Cheap flights to
Punta Cana (PUJ)

People ask us all the time if there’s a specific day of the week when flights are cheapest. Our answer is no, but there is a time period when you can find the best deals. We call it the Goldilocks Window—not too last minute, but not too early. For domestic flights, that means booking 1–3 months before a trip. For international trips, the sweet spot is a little earlier and longer, about 2–8 months ahead of a trip.

For those traveling during a high season, or on a trip with specific dates, we recommend planning even further in advance. If you’re planning to travel over the December holidays, you should start looking for fares in July, for example.

Last-minute deals are extremely rare. In fact, prices tend to jump at the last minute, especially at the 21-, 14-, and 7-day points before a departure date; book before those points if possible.

Even if you’re watching fares like a hawk, some flights never seem to get any cheaper. For times like these, we turn to our Greek Islands Trick. Basically, you get as close as you can to your final destination, then look for a cheap regional flight or other transit option for the last leg. It works especially well for getting to popular Greek islands, like Santorini, in peak season (via London, for example), but the trick can be used anywhere.

Since Punta Cana is so close to the states and often relatively cheap to get to, it might not always make sense to use this trick. However, it might be nice to know how to use it for other destinations—and you never know, it could come in handy for Punta Cana depending on where you live in the US. People in Miami likely won’t need to use it when Punta Cana is just a short flight away. But what if you live in Seattle? You could look for a cheap flight to Miami or San Juan, Puerto Rico. If you find a great deal, then look for a cheap flight from one of those destinations to Punta Cana. It could be cheaper than flying from Seattle to Punta Cana.

If you live in Boston, you’ve maybe searched for flights from New York in the past, but you might not have thought to search much farther afield. However, sometimes you can save a ton of money by looking at flights from cities that at first glance don’t seem even remotely close to your home airport.

Florida, for example, has tons of flights to Punta Cana. It’s worth checking for flights out of Florida airports like Miami or Orlando, and if you find a truly amazing deal, then look for cheap flights from Boston to Miami. If you can find a $130 flight from Miami to Orlando and a $150 flight from Boston to Miami, versus a $650 flight from Boston to Punta Cana, it could be worth the extra planning.

Don’t forget to check nearby airports too, like New York.

If your schedule is flexible, travel outside the busy season. The shoulder season from March–May is a great time to visit Punta Cana. Peak travel season is over but summer hasn’t hit, so you’ll get fewer crowds, cheaper prices, and avoid muggy or rainy summer weather. Of course, if you don’t mind hot weather and are okay spending a day indoors if it rains, you can find great deals during the summer.

If your heart is set on a winter getaway to Punta Cana, we don’t blame you. Try to at least look for fares on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays. Those are generally the cheapest days to fly, while Fridays and Sundays are the most expensive.

Perhaps the simplest way to find cheap flights is to not even look for them. Just sit back and let technology do the work. Set up fare alerts for your desired itinerary and any other dates or airports you would be okay with flying into or out of. We recommend doing this ahead of the Goldilocks Window we talked about above so you can see the deals that come through during that time. Then, you’ll get an email when fares drop by a noteworthy amount. All you have to do is book.

Punta Cana is well served by East Coast airports and airports around the Caribbean. Around five European cities also offer direct flights to Punta Cana. If you live in Chicago, Austin, or a major city east of those, chances are you can find a nonstop flight. From elsewhere in the US, and from much of the rest of the world, you’ll make a connection.